Forties People

Almost one-third of Europe's small businesses are planning to expand during 2010, according to a new study published today (April 28th).

Hiscox's second DNA of an Entrepreneur study shows that 30 per cent of the 1,000 businesses it polled in the UK, France, Germany and the Netherlands are hoping to increase in size over the course of the year, with nearly two-thirds (63 per cent) saying they would be doing so from June onwards.

Over half (58 per cent) of the small firms indicated that they feel optimistic about the year ahead in the aftermath of the global economic downturn, with 53 per cent saying that they felt 2010 to be a good year to start-up a new small business.

Alan Thomas, small business expert at Hiscox, said: "The small and medium-sized enterprise sector is a strong bellwether for the rest of the economy so it's a great sign that Europe's entrepreneurs believe they are now in a sound financial position and well placed for growth in the second half of 2010."

Posted by Daniel Frost